• Energy Science Minor
• B.S. Physics - Energy Science Option
• Energy Science Courses on the Web
• Energy Science Web Links

Go to Home Page for Department of Physics and Energy Science

Energy Science Minor

The Energy Science Program is intended to be taken as a minor with various technical and non-technical degrees. Energy science courses are also intended to supplement degree programs including, but not limited to geography, geology, engineering and economics. Interested students are urged to discuss the program with their major advisers.

The Energy Science Program is designed to prepare students to appreciate (and possibly find jobs in) alternate energy sources. Specifically, courses are offered in solar energy, wind energy, nuclear energy, and related fields such as remote sensing and climatology.

Depending on a student's background, a minor may be obtained which requires knowledge of calculus or courses may be selected to provide a less mathematical minor. The specific requirements are:

Students must take either ENSC 150/151 or ENSC 250.

Students must take ENSC 160 and 162.

Students must select additional courses from the following list of electives. The combination of required courses and electives must total a minimum pf 18 credit hours, or which, at least 9 credit hours must be upper division.

 Elective Courses:

PES 213	General Physics III	3 credits
PES 313	Modern Physics	3
PES 318	Instrumentation Lab II	2
PES 341	Thermodynamics and Stat. Mech.	3
ENSC/PES 361	Solar Energy Design	3
ENSC/PES 365	Nuclear Physics and Energy	3
ENSC/PES 367	Alternative Energy Sources	3
ENSC/PES 460	Advanced Solar Energy	3
ENSC/Geol 312	Structural Geology I	5
ENSC/GES 320	Practical Meteorology	4
ENSC/GES 406	Introduction to Remote Sensing	4
ENSC/GES 409	Advanced Remote Sensing	4

Further information about specific courses can be found on the Physics Department Course Information page.

B.S. in Physics: Energy Science Option

Students may major in energy science by using the B.S. degree in Physics option for energy science. This is basically a Physics B.S. degree with some energy science courses substituted for Physics courses. The details of this program can be found on the Physics Department web page.

Energy Science Courses - on the Web

• ENSC 150 Introduction to Energy Science
• ENSC 160 Introduction to Solar Energy
• ENSC 367 Alternative Energy Sources
• PES 365 Nuclear Physics and Energy Technology

Energy Science links on the Web

Physics Reference Web Sites:

• periodic table of the elements: http://www.shef.ac.uk:80/~chem/web-elements/
• physical constants and data (NIST): http://physics.nist.gov/PhysRefData/contents.html
• Thermodynamic Data and Property Calculation Sites

Physics and Energy Science Resources for Teachers:

• NOVA Online--Teachers: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/teachers/
• The Gateway to Educational Materials--NLE, US Dept of Education: http://thegateway.org/
• MCI Marco Polo: http://www.mci.com/marcopolo
• Second Nature (environmental education): http://www.2nature.org/
• EPA: Green Web of Knowledge: http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/ala/index.html
• Energy Enhancement Conservation Project (education modules, general and trade specific, home energy conservation, lesson plans, activities, tests): http://ecep1.usl.edu/ecep/ecep.htm
• National Energy Foundation (educational materials for K-12): http://www.nef1.org/
• Energy Quest (K-12 and beyond, information, links, activities) : http://www.energy.ca.gov/education/index2.html

Energy Science and Environmental Physics Web Sites:

• solar home: http://www.solarhouse.com
• Schools Going Solar: http://www.ttcorp.com/upvg/schools/index.htm
• Energy Information Administration: http://www.eia.doe.gov/
• Second Nature (environmental education): http://www.2nature.org/
• EPA: Green Web of Knowledge: http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/ala/index.html
• Classical & Statistical Thermodynamics & Mechanics Educational Sites
• Solar Environment Center (Pictures of the Sun today!): http://www.sec.NOAA.gov/
• Sunspots, Solar cycles and Sun videos: http://www.sunspotcycle.com/
• Video of Total Solar Eclipse: http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect/time/eclips94.mpg
• California Energy Commission: http://www.energy.ca.gov/
• Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology (CREST): http://solstice.crest.org/index.shtml
• University of Oregon: energy science web site (many links): http://zebu.uoregon.edu/energy.html
• Solar Utilities Network (energy science in the home): Energy audit forms, lightbulb calculator, http://www.solarnet.org/
• Sun's Joules CD - limited Web demo version: http://solstice.crest.org/renewables/SJ/index.html
• Renewable energy education modules (solar, geothermal, wind, biomass . . .): http://solstice.crest.org/renewables/re-kiosk/index.shtml
• Energy Enhancement Conservation Project (education modules, general and trade specific, home energy conservation): http://ecep1.usl.edu/ecep/ecep.htm
• Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies (clean power, global warming: http://www.ceert.org/home.html